Disclaimer: I do NOT own the Harry Potter series and any of the characters. All credit goes to my hero, the wonderful J.K. Rowling! :D
Spov
Being friends with Hallie was wonderful, but also very strange. Even as October faded into November, I still had trouble adjusting to it. I was used to her looking annoyed when she saw me, not smiling. Before, talking to her had been a joint exercise in decoding sarcasm and dodging shots at my self-esteem. Now, she was perfectly friendly, even talkative, which was something I'd never noticed in her before mainly because around others, she wasn't a talkative person at all. Sure she'd participate in conversation if she was expected to, but for the most part, she was perfectly content to keep what she was thinking inside her head. The exception though, seemed to be when she was with me. She talked all the time and it was hard to tell, but she seemed to be even more willing to participate in a conversation with me than with Remus. Something that had never happened before.
She smiled at me when she entered the dungeons and I felt a strange mix of elation and dread.
"What's wrong with you?" she asked catching my expression and sitting down.
"Force of habit really." I said. "The last time you looked that cheerful around me was after you'd hexed me in fifth year." We had just won the quidditch cup and I'd drank a little too much fire whiskey at the post game celebration. One thing led to another and I'd tried to kiss her. Her curse sent me to the hospital wing for a week.
"You know it always amazes me how long it took her to get the tentacles off your face." Hallie mused.
"Yeah well you didn't help." I pointed out. Hallie, who'd been working at the hospital wing, refused to tell Madam Pomfrey what curse she'd hit me with. Instead she preferred to watch me struggle. "So you can understand why I wouldn't trust that smile."
"Relax will you?" she said rolling her eyes. "Seeing you just reminded me of something I wanted to tell you."
"Which is?" I asked curiously.
She grinned again but this time her eyes glittered slyly.
"I happened to over hear-"
"Which means you were spying," I interrupted her smirking.
"No actually, I wasn't." She said in irritation. "I was in the library."
"What a shock." I said rolling my eyes and she glowered.
"Will you let me finish?" she asked sharply.
"Ok, ok, I'm sorry." I said putting my hands up in defeat. "Continue."
"Finally." She said pointedly. "Anyways, I was in the library last night when I happened to hear a conversation between a certain James Potter and Lily Evans."
"Yeah?"
"Apparently they'd stayed late in the library after their meeting with the prefects to distribute this weeks passwords, and there was some major flirting going on." She said knowingly.
"Really? How could you tell?" I asked interestedly. It wasn't unusual for James to try and flirt with Lily, but she'd never reciprocated before.
"Well, James was acting pretty normal, but Lily is always the same when she's flirting with a guy." She said lowering her voice as James and Lily entered the classroom. "Just watch."
I looked at the two and saw that Hallie was right. There was something different about the way Lily was acting.
"You see that?" she asked as Lily tossed her hair over her shoulder and fixed James with a radiant smile. "Lily always does that little hair flipy flirty grin thing when ever she fancies a guy."
"Sorry?" I asked distracted momentarily from Lily and James. I raised an eyebrow at Hallie and tried to keep a straight face. "Did you actually just say hair flipy flirty grin thing?"
"Oh shut it." She said scowling. "Like you have a better name for it."
"How about sexy hair toss and smile?"
"You just think you're good at everything don't you?" she asked me tersely.
"Pretty much."
"You're insufferable." She said rolling her eyes and looking back at our friends. "This is an interesting development though. I'd say we're one Hogsmead weekend away from being best friend in laws."
"Excuse me?" I asked her frowning.
"Best friend in laws." She repeated but I still didn't understand.
"What in the name of Merlin's beard is a best friend in law?" I asked her.
"You know, two people who are forced to spend a lot of time together when their best friends start dating."
"Do normal people actually say that, or is it just you?" I asked her still trying not to laugh.
She shot me a look but before she could retaliate Slughorn had entered the dungeon and the class fell silent.
"Good morning everyone." He said brightly and there was a general murmur of greeting from the class. "Today we will be starting a very exciting unit." He said happily making his way towards the front of the room. He reached his desk and took the lid off an enormous cauldron that rested on it. In the cauldron was a pearly looking potion with thick steam swirling up from it. Immediately, I was hit with a strange, but familiar sensation as the classroom filled with an intoxicating scent. It smelled like roses and the sweet spicy smell of cinnamon in Mrs. Potter's home made apple tart, my favorite dessert. I smiled as my brain seemed to slow, my thoughts misguided by the enticing aroma and distracted by the spirals of steam. For some reason it made me think of Hallie and just how pretty she looked today with her deep blue eyes that were staring at the potion.
"Blimey Sirius, how much cologne did you put on this morning?" she asked looking a little overwhelmed, her tone breathless.
"What are you talking about?" I asked confused. The scent was very distracting and I found myself wrestling with a desire to play with her hair.
"Your cologne, I can smell it from here." She said frowning. "It smells like Old Spice."
I had no idea what Old Spice was or what she was even talking about.
"I'm not wearing any cologne." I said puzzled. It wasn't unusual for me to wear it, but I'd woken up late this morning and didn't have time.
"Then why do I smell it?" she asked looking up at me her expression dazed. Her eyes met mine, and suddenly, I was grabbed by an urge to bend down and kiss her.
"Hallie I-" I started but was immediately cut off.
"Amortentia." Slughorn said happily, beaming at the class and we both jumped. He shut the lid of the cauldron and the scent dissipated leaving the class in confusion. Hallie's face burned bright red and she quickly turned back to her books. I saw that other people were looking just as confused as I felt. "One of the most powerful potions in existence, and without a doubt the strongest love potion in the world."
"Love potions aren't powerful." Hallie said skeptically.
"I beg to differ." I said sourly and she smirked.
"That's right, you've been slipped a love potion a couple times haven't you?"
"Three times." I said stiffly. "And I hope never to have a fourth."
Being under the influence of a love potion was one of the most wonderful and yet terrible experiences in the word. The effect varied depending on the strength of the potion, but it usually started out the same. My mind had been clouded until I could hardly think. It was filled with a blissful empty sort of fog that left no room for thoughts or inhibitions, but created intense emotions and attractions. The first one had just sort of taken control of my senses and I'd sort of blacked out, doing whatever the girl told me to until James had gotten ahold of me and tied me to a chair until the effects wore off. The second and third had actually made me see things differently, the girls had looked like someone else, but again, I couldn't remember anything that had happened, let alone who I'd thought they were.
"In our first unit we will be studying love potions, and other emotion enhancing elixirs." Slughorn continued. "During this term we will look at how certain potions and their ingredients can affect the senses, trick them into telling you something is there when it is not, and their ability to fabricate sensations and emotions that you are not actually experiencing."
I tuned out Slughorn's lecture and glanced at Hallie who seemed to be having trouble concentrating on the notes she was taking. From the set of her shoulders I knew she could tell I was watching her, but for once she didn't tell me to look away.
I spent the rest of the class simply watching her take notes, hardly aware of the passing time and I was surprised to hear the bell ring.
"Homework." Slughorn said and I glanced up at the board. "List the seven stages of sensational stimulation and write an essay on how emotion enhancing elixirs use this process to effect the human mind as a means of control."
"I'm guessing you didn't understand a word of that?" Hallie said looking at me as she shouldered her school bag.
"What makes you say that?"
"Well you weren't paying attention were you?"
"Not to Slughorn, no." I admitted and she blushed.
"Well we can work on it together if you want." She said. "Tonight in the library."
"Isn't that sort of a you and Remus thing?" I asked feeling a little surprised. Hallie had never invited me to study with her, even since we'd been friends. I'd always thought she'd think I'd try and distract her.
"Usually it is." She said shrugging. "But he said he was busy tonight but he wouldn't tell me why."
With a jolt I remembered that tonight was the full moon.
"Yeah I forgot we had plans."
"What sort of plans?" she asked curiously.
"Just guy stuff."
"Which means you're getting into trouble, doesn't it?" she said knowingly.
"It's possible."
She rolled her eyes. "Some other time then I guess."
"Yeah definitely." I said nodding.
"I'll see you around then Sirius." She said grinning slightly as she walked away to meet up with her friends.
I packed up my things then followed Hallie out of the classroom to where James and Remus were waiting in the corridor.
"I swear mate." James said dreamily as I caught up with them. "I'm going to marry her."
"What are you talking about?" I asked confused while watching Hallie out of the corner of my eyes.
"Evans." He said happily putting an arm around both Remus and my shoulders.
"You know if she really is your future wife, you might want to start calling her by her first name." Remus said amused and then when he spotted my confused look he continued. "I think Prongs here had a rather strong reaction to the love potion."
"Lily Potter." James said in wonder, apparently unaware of what Remus had just said to me. "I like the sound of that."
"Prongs, as your best mate it's my job I'm obligated to tell you how pathetic you sound right now." I said rolling my eyes.
"What about you and Benson?" James asked his expression suddenly much more lucid.
"What about her?" I asked uneasily.
"Well you just couldn't keep your eyes off her could you?" Remus said smirking.
"Shut up Moony." I said but James laughed.
"Oh relax mate." He said bracingly. "There's nothing wrong with being in love."
"I am NOT in love with Hallie." I said sharply.
"Then what are you with her?" Remus asked raising an eyebrow.
"That's a good question." I said frowning, remembering how strong the desire had been for me to kiss her. My eyes landed on Hallie, who was farther down the hall, talking animatedly to her friends. She'd seemed a little different lately, and I wasn't sure if that was because I was getting to know her better or if Hallie herself was starting to change. She seemed to laugh more easily, and was smiling a lot more. In general she seemed happier just by the little things like now, when she was with her friends. She seemed excited and was talking with her hands. Something I'd never noticed her doing before. Just the other day I caught her playing cards with Lily and Alice, instead of working while they played.
"And what's the answer?" James asked curiously.
"I'm not sure." I admitted watching as her long hair swung as she walked. "I guess for right now, we're friends."